The DC Concert Orchestra Society presents a chamber music concert by C The DCD ChamberC Musicians Sunday, April 7, 2019, 3:00 p.m. St. Mark’s Episcopal Church O RandallC Stewart,M Artistic Advisor Johannes Brahms Clarinet Quintet in B minor, Op. 115 I. Allegro II. Adagio III. Andantino IV. Con moto
Karin Caifa, Clarinet • Lydia Leong, Violin • Alex Cheng, Violin • Mike Garrahan, Viola • Tom Zebovitz, Cello
INTERMISSION (15 minutes)
Rebecca Clarke Morpheus
Susan Russo, Viola • Hilary van Wagenen, Piano
Antonín Dvořák Serenade for Wind Instruments, Cello and Double Bass in D minor, Op. 44 I. Moderato quasi marcia II. Tempo di minuet - Trio. Presto III. Andante con moto IV. Finale: Allegro molto
Will Esterling, Conductor • Andrea Schewe, Oboe • Rhett Summers, Oboe • Karin Caifa, Clarinet • Alan Barnett, Clarinet • Mark Stanga, Horn • David Steinhorn, Horn • Carson Smith, Horn • Kathleen Emery, Bassoon • Dan Leathers, Bassoon • Christopher Herman, Cello • Deborah Edge, Double Bass Program Notes
Clarinet Quintet in B minor, Op. 115 Johannes Brahms b. 7 May 1833, Hamburg, Germany d. 3 April 1897, Vienna, Austria
By 1890, Johannes Brahms had largely retired from composition, telling friends that at age 57, he “had achieved enough.” But a recital by Richard Mühlfeld, principal clarinetist of the Meiningen Court Orchestra, in March 1891, sparked a fresh burst of creative output, including four chamber works featuring clarinet. Vacationing in Austria that summer, Brahms composed the Trio in A minor for clarinet, cello and piano (Op. 114) and the Quintet in B minor for clarinet and strings (Op. 115). The Clarinet Sonatas (Op. 120) followed in 1894.
When Brahms composed his quintet, repertoire for clarinet and string quartet included works by Anton Reicha, Carl Maria von Weber, and others. Brahms, however, modeled his composition after the Clarinet Quintet in A major (K. 581) of Wolfgang Amadeus Mozart. While Weber’s work, for example, feels much like a clarinet concerto with string accompaniment, the Mozart and Brahms quintets are true chamber music collaborations.
The Brahms quintet is in four movements. Like Mozart’s, the strings have the first say in an opening Allegro. A moody Adagio demands intense technique from the clarinet in a dramatic series of runs. The third movement, Andantino, is the most upbeat. The fourth, in another parallel to the Mozart work, is a theme and five variations.
The work had its public debut in Berlin on December 12, 1891. Mühlfeld performed with the Joachim Quartet, led by Brahms’ close friend, the violinist Joseph Joachim. The mood of the Quintet Op. 115 is often described as “autumnal,” bearing an introspective and melancholy quality of a composer in his final years.
Sources: An Overview on the Brahms Clarinet Quintet, by Mitchell Estrin; Johannes Brahms: A Biography, Jan Swafford (1999) Morpheus Rebecca Clarke b. 27 August 1886, Harrow, England d. 13 October 1979, New York City, New York
Ms. Russo will provide introductory comments.
Serenade for Wind Instruments, Cello and Double Bass in D minor, Op. 44 Antonín Leopold Dvořák b. 8 September 1841, Nelahozeses, Bohemia, Austrian Empire (now Czech Republic) d. 1 May 1904, Prague, Czech Republic
Dvořák came of age in an era of contradictions and rapid change that altered cultural appreciations of the past. Raised by an innkeeper and professional zither player in a village near Prague, he was educated and became a working organist in a musical culture dominated by opera and narrative-based “program” music. Meanwhile, the genres of the Classical and Romantic periods had become academic exercises. He also witnessed the rise of nationalism, which political leaders manipulated to create two great empires in his youth—Germany and Austria-Hungary.
Despite an early interest in the heroic music and philosophy of Wagner, Dvořák became perhaps the most famous protégé of Johannes Brahms after submitting compositions to the Austrian State Prize in 1875, for which Brahms served as a juror. Brahms revived public interest after several decades in new symphonies and chamber music composed in a self-consciously historicist neo-classical mold. For Dvorak, artistic authenticity meant balancing the “universal” German style with Czech musical motifs and folk tunes understood representative of his ancestral nation.
Dvořák composed his Serenade for Wind Instruments, Cello and Double Bass in 1878, inspired by Mozart’s Serenade in B flat major. Its musical motifs reach even further back into the Rococo era, imagining a romantic scene of cultural comity between Bohemian aristocrats and their local village musicians. Dvořák employed Mozart’s instrumentation, while adding cello to the double bass to strengthen the lower range.
While the first two movements open with classical settings—the march and minuet—they evolve into clever frameworks for Slavic rhythms and melodies. In the second movement, critics have identified the sousedská (neighbor’s dance), with the presto furiant dance in pseudo-12/8 hemiola rhythm in the trio. The andante third movement features a swirling nocturne duet between oboe and clarinet. The exciting finale recaps the melody from the march, but using dynamic and rhythmic techniques evoking a much more contemporary sense of drama and urgency.
Eric Schewe 2019 DCCM Donors
Institutional Sponsors Copper ($50-$99) Hickok Cole Architects Susan Alexander Nadia Sophie Seiler Memorial Fund Cassie Conley New Orchestra of Washington Deborah Edge Kathleen Emery Platinum ($1000+) Edith Gilmore Vesper Mei Jack Aubert Mark Mollenhauer Yolanda Cole Warren Mullison Robert Hood Whitney Rakowski Robert Myers David Steinhorn Douglas Rathbun
Gold ($500-$999) For the twelve month period April 1, 2018 to March 31, 2019 Silver ($250-$499) Rod Morgan
Bronze ($100-$249) John Cook Kwame Lewis Gaye Ludlow JoAnn Lynn
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DCCM Sunday, June 9, 2019, 3:00 p.m St. Mark’s Episcopal Church – Capitol Hill. Program TBA
DCCO Sunday, May 5, 2019, 3:00 p.m. Church of the Epiphany – “Postcards”
Program: Giovanni Gabrielli, Sonata Octavi Toni Edward Lalo, Symphonie Espagnol, mvmt. 1 Eugene Kim, Violin Bedřich Smetana, The Moldau Jennifer Higdon, blue cathedral Ottorino Respighi, The Pines of Rome
For more information or to RSVP, please visit programs.dccos.org
In partnership with the New Orchestra of Washington, DCCOS musicians will be appearing in performances at NOWsummer Music Festival 2019.
Saturday, June 1, Chuck Levin’s Washington Music Center, Wheaton, MD Time TBA, DCCM ensembles perform alongside NOW ensembles in a clinic / recital. Program TBA. Additional concert TBA.
Sunday, June 2, Temple Imanuel, Kensington, MD, 3:00 p.m. DC Concert Orchestra (DCCO) members perform with the New Orchestra of Washington in a side by side performance of
BEETHOVEN Coriolan Overture HAYDN Symphony No. 104 PROKOFIEV Symphony No. 1 in D Major, “Classical”
Please visit NewOrchestraofWashington.org/nowsummer-concerts for further information and to purchase tickets. Looking Ahead About Us DCCM
The DC Chamber Musicians (DCCM) is an alliance of adult, non-professional, advanced musicians who share a passion for chamber music. All ensembles performing in DCCM concerts are professionally coached and have recently participated in master classes. DCCM is an operational unit of the DC Concert Orchestra Society (DCCOS).
The DC Concert Orchestra Society (DCCOS) is a charitable, non- profit, 501(c)(3) arts organization based in Washington, DC. DCCOS also sponsors the DC Concert Orchestra (DCCO), an 80-piece symphonic orchestra, and Classical Musicians of Metro DC (CM- MDC) assisting more casual chamber musicians in meeting fellow musicians and organizing non-performance oriented rehearsals. Meeting the music education and performance needs of over 600 members musicians, DCCOS has the following mission statement: The DC Concert Orchestra Society brings classical music to the metropolitan region while providing performance opportunities and continuing education for non-professional adult musicians to enjoy a lifetime of music-making. Through the DC Concert Orchestra and DC Chamber Musicians, the Society seeks to provide quality performances for diverse audiences and communities, enriching the cultural life of greater Washington.
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Robert Myers, President Jack Aubert, Secretary Douglas Rathbun, Treasurer Yolanda Cole Katherine Mariska, ex officio Randall Stewart, ex officio
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